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27 Cards in this Set
- Front
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What was split into four parts? |
Germany was split into parts. East Germany was given to the USSR, Berlin is in East Germany and it was considered unfair for the Soviets to get all of Berlin, so Berlin was split into four parts.
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Where and when was the division of Germany and Berlin into four zones decided?
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At the Yalta Conference (Feb 1945) and the Potsdam Conference (July 1945). |
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Prior to the Berlin Blockade and Airlift, how did the USSR's part of Germany differ to Britain, France and the USA's parts?
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The USSR kept their zones weak. They took resources from it since they feared attack from a strong Germany. |
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What benefits did the Western zones of Germany receive? Why did this antagonise Stalin? |
The Western zones of Germany received Marshall Aid from America. Britain, France and the USA combined their zones in 1948. This area became known as West Germany. Additionally, a single currency, the Deutschmark, was introduced into West Germany. |
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When did Stalin begin to block West Berlin from West Germany?
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On the 23rd of June 1948 he blocked roads, railways and canals connecting West Germany to West Berlin. He did this because he thought this would starve the West Berliners and force America and the others to give up Berlin to him.
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Why was Truman unwilling to give West Berlin up? |
If West Berlin fell then West Germany might be next. In addition, Truman wanted West Berlin to be a symbol of freedom behind the Iron Curtain.
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What did Truman decide to do against the Blockade?
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He couldn't move in with tanks because that'd risk starting a war. The only one to reach West Berlin was now by air. The USA decided to fly supplies into West Berlin using three routes. They continued this for ten months; the Americans and British delivered clothes, food, fuel and building materials to West Berlin, reaching 8000 tonnes a day in 1949.
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How did Stalin react to Truman's airlift? |
Stalin was furious by the American action. He cut off electricity and promised West Berliners extra rations if they moved to the East. Only 2% of the population accepted his offer. Stalin could not attack the American planes as he feared that Truman would use the Atomic Bomb against him. |
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How and when did the Berlin Blockade and Airlift end?
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By the 12th May 1949, it was clear to Stalin that America would not give in and so the blockade ended. |
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Berlin became a powerful symbol of cold war divisions during the Blockade and Airlift. Americans saw it as an oasis of democratic freedom in the middle of Communist repression whilst the Soviets saw it as an invasive cancer growing the in the workers' paradise of east Germany. It was also a potential flashpoint for future conflict. |
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Describe Marshall Aid.
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The economies of Europe had been ruined by WWII and govts in France and Italy were being threatened by strong Communist parties. George Marshall reported that Europe would need around $17 billion to recover. Congress was on the point of refusing this money when events in Czechoslovakia changed their minds. In March 1948 the communists kicked out the non-communists and came to power. Jan Masaryk, a minister who supported the West, was murdered. This decided Congress; they granted the money.
Marshall Aid was given to 16 countries to improve agriculture and then improve industry. Stalin prevented any communist countries in the east from getting it, however, Tito of Yugoslavia defied Stalin and recieved Marshall Aid. |
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How did Cuba fall to Communism?
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Cuba had long been an American ally, rule by a hated American dictator named Batista. In 1959, Fidel Castro overthrew Batista and established a new pro-communism state. This was the first Communists state in America's sphere of influence and would be a real test on their policy of containment.
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How was the relationship between Cuba and the USA after its fall to Communism?
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They maintained a frosty relationship for two years (1959 - 1961) that avoided direct confrontation. Castro took over American-owned businesses in Cuba but let the USA keep its naval base. He claimed that he wanted to run Cuba without interference but by the summer of 1960 he was receiving arms from the Soviet Union and American spies knew this. In January 1961 the USA broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba. This made it clear that the USA was no longer prepared to tolerate a Soviet satellite in its sphere of influence.
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How did the Bay of Pigs invasion go?
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In April 1961 President Kennedy supplied arms, equipment and transport for 1400 anti-Castro exiles to invade Cuba and overthrow him. The exiles landed at the Bay of Pigs. They were met by 20,000 Cuban troops armed with tanks and modern weapons (they were expecting a large-scale invasion). The invasion failed disastrously. Castro captured or killed them all quickly. To Cuba and the Soviet union the failed invasion suggested that the USA was unwilling to get directly involved in Cuba. The Soviet leaded Khrushchev was scornful of Kennedy's pathetic attempt to oust Communism from Cuba.
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How did the Soviet Union respond to the Bay of Pigs fiasco?
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Soviet arms began to flood into Cuba. The USSR announced this in May 1962. As a result, Cuba had the best-equipped army in Latin America and by Sept 1962 it had thousands of Soviet missiles, patrol boats, radar vans etc. and 5000 Soviet technicians to help maintain the weapons.
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How did the Americans react to the weapons flooding into Cuba after the Bay of Pigs fiasco?
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The were able to tolerate conventional weapons being put on Cuba but were worried if the USSR would put nuclear missiles on it.
Kennedy warned the USSR about this, putting nukes on Cuba would be unacceptable. The USSR assured the USA that it had no need to do this nor did it intend to do so. |
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How/when did the USSR start putting missiles on Cuba? How did the Americans find out?
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In Sept 1962, CIA reports from Cuban refugees indicated a build-up of Russian bases on Cuba. A month later an American U2 spy plane flew over Cuba and took photos. The CIA identify missile sites being built for use with nuclear missiles. On the 20th Oct 1962, 20+ Russian ships are spotted in the mid-Atlantic on their way to Cuba. On board are missiles in crates. One week later an American U2 spy lane is shot down by Soviet forces over Cuba. the pilot is killed.
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What effect would missiles in Cuba have?
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It would be a powerful weapon against the USA> Cuban nukes would be able to reach the vast majority of the country. The missiles that the Soviets intended to put on Cuba could kill 80 million Americans over a range of 2000 miles, with a flight time of 17 minutes.
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What did Kennedy decide to do to stop the missiles getting to Cuba?
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He decided on a blockade. It was announced on the 22nd of October 1962, he called for the USSR to withdraw the missiles. One day later he received a letter from Khrushchev saying that Soviet ships will not observe the blockade.
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How did the blockade go?
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The blockade began on the 24th, the first Soviet ships stopped before reaching the blockade zone. On the 26th, Kennedy received a letter: it said that the Cuban missiles were purely defensive but also said that if the USA would not participate in an attack on Cuba then removal of the missiles could be considered.
One day later, Khrushchev sent a second letter that revised his proposals, saying that the condition for removing the missiles from Cuba is that the USA withdraw its missiles from Turkey; Kennedy refuses to accept this. An American spy is shot down over Cuba and Kennedy is recommended to launch a reprisal attack, but he decides not to and instead publicly accepts the term's of Khrushchev first letter and secretly accepts the terms of the second. He says that if the USSR does not back down, an attack will follow. Khrushchev accepts. |
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What were the consequences of the Cuban Missile Crisis?
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- Cuba stayed Communist and highly armed, however the nukes were removed.
- Kennedy emerged with a much better reputation because of how he'd stood up to Khrushchev. Khrushchev gained an ally (Cuba) and his role as a responsible peacemaker was highlighted. - It helped thaw Cold War relations between the two powers. Both leaders saw how close their brinkmanship had brought them to nuclear war. They were now prepared to take more steps to reduce the risk of nuclear war. A hotline between the White House and the Kremlin was set up. The following year, 1963, they signed a Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. - Within the USA it had an effect on the anti-communist opinion. They had wanted the USA to invade Cuba and eradicate communism but now saw the risks and weaknesses of this plan (Soviets retaliating with nukes). |
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What were Kennedy's successes and failures in the conflict? |
SUCCESSES
- blockade worked, stopped missiles reaching Cuba and removed missiles already placed there. - seen as a peacemaker for avoiding a war - deal over removing US missiles from Turkey was kept secret. He also got credit for "standing up" to Khrushchev, this meant that most people thought he "won" the crisis. FAILURES - JFK's support for anti-Castro Cubans at the bay of Pigs in 1961 was a big failure and led to the 1962 crisis because, after 1961, Castro felt he needed more USSR help - he had to remove the Turkey missiles to secure the deal - Cuba stayed Communist |
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What were Khrushchev's successes and failures in the conflict? |
SUCCESSES |
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What is a cold war? |
Intense economic, political, military, and ideological rivalry between nations that stays just short of direct military conflict.
America was a capitalist democracy and Russia was a communist dictatorship. They had very differing beliefs. They used proxy wars to have a go at each other like in Vietnam and Korea. Or they tried to beat the other country in the race to get into space, or raced each other to build/position nuclear war heads |
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Who was responsible for starting the Cold War? |
The Cold War started as a gradual escalation of issues arising from the end of WWII. At the Yalta Conference (Feb 1945), it was agreed that eastern Europe should be seen as a Soviet 'sphere of influence', but it was not agreed that the USSR could move its borders into Poland.
By the time of the Potsdam Conference (July-August 1945), Stalin's armies were occupying most of eastern Europe (which could, loosely, be deemed having a sphere of influence on the area, when in fact it was total control) AND had moved its borders into Poland and set-up a Commie govt there. This, in tandem with the Allies atomic bomb testing, led to massive disagreements over things like what do with Germany (Stalin wanted them crippled so they couldn't threaten USSR), who must pay reparations (USSR wanted them to pay compensation for the twenty-million Russians that had died in WWII, Truman did not want to make the same mistake as at the ToV) and Soviet policy in eastern Europe (people were unhappy with what he'd set up there). Over the next 9 months, Stalin achieved domination of eastern Europe. Churchill described the border between Soviet-controlled countries and the West as an Iron Curtain.
By 1946, it was clear that the relationship between the Soviets and the West had broken down, it had been replaced by suspicion and accusations. |
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Why was the USA drawn into Vietnam? |
They followed the policy of containment. North Vietnam had become independent of French colonial rule and at around the same time Communists had come to power in China, the Chinese began to help Ho Chi Minh. The Americans now saw the Viet Minh as puppets of the Chinese Communists and feared a Communist plan to dominate all of SE Asia (the domino effect). Therefore, the USA started to back the French war effort in South Vietnam and helped them set up a non-Communist govt. France is defeated in 1954 - they withdraw. In 1955 Americans helped Diem set up a Republic in S Vietnam - it is corrupt and unpopular. In 1960 the Viet Cong start a war against the S Vietnamese govt. By 1962, Kennedy is discretely sending military personnel to fight the VC. In 1963 Diem is overthrown and Kennedy is assasinated. LBJ becomes president, he sends many troops to Vietnam. 1964: Gulf of Torkin event - N Vietnamese patrol boats fire on two American boats, therefore LBJ is given more authority to use force in Vietnam. |
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Why did the USA withdraw from Vietnam? |
LBJ realised the war could not be won militarily due to guerilla tactics - decided to hold a peach conference with the Vietnamese in Paris, March 1968.
He also made this decision because of huge pressure from the public caused by controversies like the My Lai Massacre (300-400 killed - none of which were VC) and the Kent State Massacre (4 anti-war protestors killed at an American university, caused a student strike of 4 million). Also, the public learnt the USA wasn't as invincible as they thought, through the media they saw horrible images of the treatment of both Vietnamese and Americans that changed their opinion on war dramatically.
Nixon came to power for the peace negotiations, sought 'peace with honour', wanted: immediate ceasefire, all PoWs released, all US troops to leave and S. Vietnam to decide its own fate. S. Vietnam is defeated two years later and Vietnam is finally unified under a Communist Govt. |
